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World Cup Soccer fans in Kerala and the enthusiasm for teams of Argentina, Brazil and Portugal, attacking goal scoring players Messi, Neymar and Ronaldo.

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NYT shows the "potrero" circuit in Buenos aires where young soccer players get their raw beginnings.

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Argentine soccer star Diego Maradona who died at 60 after health problems. Many controversies surround Maradona, unlike Messi and Reynaldo, two of the prominent players at this time from Argentina and Portugal. Unlike the period when Pele and Maradona dominated, today there are many good players and many good coaches such as the coaches of Liverpool and Manchester City teams from Germany and Spain, each having made soccer the single largest worldwide sport in history. New younger players are also taking the place of older players as seen in the Spanish and German teams in the Nations League soccer games. Coaches and team owners shun the publicity that drives the cost of players up and prefer to give younger unknown players a chance, which is itself a good thing for the game.

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Rosario, Argentina is the hometown of Lionel Messi. DW.com looks at this city, the third largest in Argentina, and capital of Santa Fe state. Two of Argentina's famous soccer coaches were born in Rosario. Lionel Scaloni, the current national coach and 1978 coach Cesar Luis Menotti. Argentina lost to Germany 1-0 in 2014, and 8 years later locals are sensing something big as Argentina meets France on Sunday.

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France's Mbappe, Spain's Morata, and Argentina's Messi are the leading scorers at this months World Cup Soccer.

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France's Mbappe, Argentina's Messi and Brazil's Neymar provide the star players for the World Cup Soccer in Qatar.

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The NYT shows women's World Cup Soccer countries and games in coming weeks. Brazil and France in Group F, Spain in Group C, Argentina and Italy in Group G, Portugal and the US in Group E. Vietnam, Jamaica, Morocco, Zambia and the Philippines have also made it to the soccer championship games in addition to China. NYT looks at each country team.

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After the pandemic and during high inflation, economic troubles and having to turn to the IMF for conditional loans, Argentines find cause for celebration for their performance at the World Cup Soccer Final in December 2022.

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People say it is very strange. Argentine soccer player Messi sends his transfer request to Barcelona last night with a scribbled note sent over a fax machine. The faxed message says he wishes to exercize a clause in his contract allowing him to leave for free with immediate effect. 

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French coach Herve Renard has coached teams from Zambia, Saudi Arabia and other countries. Just one year after he brought Saudi Arabia into World Cup Soccer headlines with a win over Argentina, he is coaching the women's team of France. He is eager to take on something new and offered to coach the women's team after French players Wende Renard and Sommer had a falling out with the coach Deacre. Herve Renard has brought some calm to the team, wins over Brazil and Morocco, and a chance to make it to the finals.

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Pope Francis recalls his days as a boy playing soccer on the streets outside his home in Buenos Aires, Argentina, with a rag ball because they did not always have a leather ball. "There was not always someone with a leather ball so we played with a ball made of rags, a pelota de trapo." Pope Francis was born Jorge Mario Bergoglio to Italian immigrants in Argentina. He calls it a great school of life for him being the goalie and having to take all the shots taken at him. His leadership has shown concern for the marginalized and the poor through the repeated economic crises and the current pandemic. In his talks with world leaders including Trump, Biden, and recently Modi of India he has shown the importance of taking good care of the environment, the downtrodden and the marginalized in society. 

Some of the influences in his life come from his father, an accountant from Asti in northwest Italy, who loved reading to the children and had a library.

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With withdrawal of AC Milan, Inter Milan, Athletico Madrid and 6 Premier League Clubs, one of the originators of the plan for a Super League of soccer teams, Mr. Agnelli, thinks the plan cannot proceed. There is strong opposition from the Tory government in Britain to the plan, and soccer fans are critical of it.  Agnelli had clearly not thought of the fans response as the plans he had for a Super League remained a business concept and missed the fans who are what makes soccer what it is- a global sport with enormous enthusiasm of the people. AC Milan and Inter Milan in withdrawing cited fans and said we have to be sensitive to fan sentiment. Athletico Madrid referred to coach Simeone of Argentina, who said there had to be harmony between the fans and the club. Simeone said he backed fans saying "sporting merit has to be above any other criteria." The strongest response had come from Boris Johnson in Britain who within hours of learning about fan and public sentiment said there was no way this was going to happen. During this pandemic the sport of soccer has kept up a positive feeling for billions of people around the world who watch the sport on television. Why some of the best clubs failed to grasp the fan sentiment is hard to understand. ...

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A country smaller than the US state of Connecticut will host the first World Cup Soccer games in the Arab world from November 21 to December 18. England will play US , the day after Thanksgiving.

Group A  Netherlands with Qatar, Ecuador, Senegal

Group B   England with Iran, US, Wales or Scotland/Ukraine

Group C.  Argentina with Saudi, Mexico, Poland

Group D   France with Peru, Australia/United Arab Emirates, Denmark, Tunisia

Group E  Spain, Germany, Japan with Costa Rica or New Zealand

Group F  Belgium with Canada, Morocco, Croatia

Group G.  Brazil with Serbia, Switzerland, Cameroon

Group H   Portugal with Ghana, Uruguay, South Korea 

Defending champion France has it better in its group. 

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The humble roots of Jorge Bergoglio, born of Italian immigrants to Buenos Aires, Argentina. He studied theology in Germany before becoming a Jesuit priest in 1969. Bergoglio was made bishop in 1992, archbishop of Buenos Aires in 1998, and cardinal by Pope John Paul in 2001. Bergoglio has spent much of his time working with the poor and improving education and has avoided the titles and trappings of the position. He lived in an apartment near the cathedral in the Plaza de Mayo in Buenos Aires, and cooked his own meals as archbishop. He loves Argentine tango music and is a soccer fan of the San Lorenzo Club, which was founded by Father Lorenzo, a priest who assisted at-risk kids. The sense of observers is of a person of overwhelming authenticity. Many in the Catholic Church worldwide feel this was a good choice for Pope by the cardinals because this is likely to bring the church closer to the people in Latin America, Europe and other parts of the world, and infuse the Church with new energy for renewal. Evangelical churches have spread in Latin America, particularly in Brazil, and church pews are seeing smaller numbers of people in Europe. Bergoglio, now Pope Francis, is seen as the right choice to reverse this trend and bring a regeneration of Catholicism at a difficult time. ...

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Brad Guzan, 40 years, reflects on age and playing soccer, as his crucial saves helps Atlanta beat Lionel Messi's team Miami in the first round of the MLS playoffs in 2024. Next he will face Orlando on Nov 24. He says "40 is the new 21." Guzan says age brings experience- “It’s not about feeling younger. It’s about using my experience. It’s about using moments that I’ve been in before in terms of games and situations I’ve faced, and within a millisecond trying to analyze the situation that I’m currently in, and how to use my experience to help me make a save in that moment.” Guzan's two seasons in 2021 and 2022 were not promising. He could not stop Messi in the 2016 Copa America which US lost to Argentina 4-0. He worked hard throughout till the results in stopping Inter Miami's Messi in three games this season. His son idolizes not Messi but Aston Villa (Birmingham club) goalie Argentina's Emiliano Martinez. Guzan gained his early experience playing in the Premier League for Aston Villa. ...

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This editorial in the WSJ says Argentina's president Macri has taken the right steps for the economy by devaluation of the peso and lifting capital controls. The peso exchange rate fell to 13.3 to the dollar from the central bank peg of 9.8. The central bank raised its short term lending rate to 35-38%, sending signals to capital markets that it was ready to intervene if needed so that the peso would not fall too far, and preserving stability. President Macri is planning to remove the export taxes on wheat, corn and beef, and cutting taxes on soyabeans to increase output.

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Ms Constantini is one of the executives who followed Mr. Macri as he became president of Argentina. She is a former CEO of GM Argentina. She was appointed CEO of Argentina's national airline Aerolineas Argentinas. The state owned airline has lost about $5 billion, and loses about $1 billion a year. There is no culture of budgets or revenue at the airline, say people familiar with the airline. Ms. Constantini has set the goal of cutting losses to $260 million in 2016. The goal is to increase revenues and improve earnings to the point where the airline is profitable in 4 years. The new CEO is taking an approach that she sees has a better approach of succeeding. She is getting employees involved in the company's decisions and progress. She carefully tells labor leaders of her plans and seeks feedback. Because it was run more like a government ministry than a performance based airline, says Constantini, the transformation requires a patient and employee involved approach. In 2008 the government of Mrs. Kirchner nationalized the airline previously owned by Spain's Marsans Group. Because Argentines see the airline with national pride, its like the country's soccer team. Sales are up 10% in 2016 and the airline flew one million passengers in July, up 13% from the prior year.  ...

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Anthony Hopkins is Pope Benedict XVI in November's Netflix Movie The Two Popes. Hopkins, a Welsh actor, is now famous for the way he talks about not taking himself so seriously. His view of life, just be glad you are alive and have fun doing things while you can, all this talk about getting to the top, once you get up there you find there is nothing there, just nonsense, all lies. For Hopkins it has freed up a lot of energy and makes him come alive at 81 years. Another thing he says keep working thats the only way to live, and not go into decline. So what better way to take on the role of Benedict, a German pope who becomes the first to resign his office, and have his chosen successor follow him, cardinal Mario Bergoglio of Buenos Aires, Argentina, (actor Jonathan Pryce) succeed him. Just be laid back and fill the role without thinking too much about it. So no intensity, he does not do research, actually a bit clueless, he says. Life is too short to be overconscious about oneself, he was intense once, now since about ten years he just wants to relax. Benedict he sees as an easy role especially with Pryce as cardinal Bergoglio. Fernando Meirelles directs and he is good with that. In the movie a day long conversation takes place, and two people who are from opposite ends of the world and ideologically too, have a sense of lightness about them, talking the World cup and soccer, and Hopkins playing the piano for Bergoglio. Hopkins just intent on having a lot of fun and doing it that way on the set. He sees the to popes as not walking on water, just human beings, and that make it easy for him. The human touches like going along with Bergoglio to watch football, though he nows nothing about it, and having a beer together. When playing Benedict Hopkins tells himself he is just pretending, just kidding, that makes it easy for him. His wife has encouraged Hopkins to relax by taking on painting and playing music. ...

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Benjamin Pavrd's 20 yard goal with France behind 2-1 against Argentina in the World Cup will be remembered as the goal of the tournament. Pavard's parents living near the Belgian border in a small town made great sacrifices, and travelled a lot to send Pavard out at 10 years to practice soccer with teams in France including Lille. 

He accepted an offer from Stuttgart after getting few opportunities to play in Lille. He was also made part of the 23 member team for France only when a player could not play due to injury.

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Mauricio Pochettino played for PSG at one time. The Argentine soccer player is now coach for France's PSG as it takes on Manchester City in the semi finals of the Champions League. Pochettino talks about his years as a player and then a coach in this interview in The Times. He says nervousness as a coach never bothered him as he was always so absorbed by the game and the players, and it could be a bit genetic too.

He was not active as a coach for a year after his departure from Tottenham Hotspur. Today he is seen as an effortless manager, with a natural disposition for the sport and a developer of talent.

There is an emotional attachment because he was close to PSG. "We took the decision because of our heart, not because whether it was the right moment to arrive in Paris or not," he says. "Now after 3 months we leave a very, very tough period."